


A Champ's Farewell

by MasKaiHilFantic



Category: Professional Wrestling, World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-10
Updated: 2017-01-10
Packaged: 2018-09-16 16:07:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9279287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MasKaiHilFantic/pseuds/MasKaiHilFantic
Summary: After  a devastating in-ring injury, John Cema is forced into retirement. How would he cope with it and how would the locker-room say goodbye to one of the most beloved wrestlers of all time?





	

**This is new - a wrestling fanfiction :3 I had this published over at FFN too but no inspiration made me take it down. But getting some ideas I've decided to post it again. So enjoy part one of this story. I do not own the names mentioned in this fanfiction, all rights reserved.**

**Enjoy ^_^**

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"… _I want ya'll to feel the wound, it's the truth in my words_ _  
I been quiet for too long, the truth should be heard…"_

_-If It All Ended Tomorrow (by John Cena)_

John Cena coincidentally was humming these lyrics as he sat on the locker room floor, where he remembered his career in the WWE. Championships, main events, money, fame, rap albums, movies, TV shows, and Award shows, and even a guest appearance in Hannah Montana! He has had a very successful career while he was in the WWE and quite frankly, it was the _ideal career_. But there was something in him, which made him slightly regret this illustrious career…

He remembered the fateful night his career came to a halt – a very painful halt. vAfter he took a piledriver directly on his neck he fell down and  _felt numb- he couldn't move, he couldn't speak, his vision blurred, he couldn't feel, he couldn't respond…_

He faintly remembered what he heard while he was down….

" _John, John! You okay?"_

" _John! Are you okay?!"_ _  
_"CENA'S DOWN! CENA'S DOWN!"_  
_"Ladies and Gentlemen, John Cena is not responding! He has been knocked out unconscious! I repeat, JOHN CENA HAS BEEN KNOCKED OUT UNCONSCIOUS!"__

" _Get a Goddamn ambulance!"_

" _John… JOHN!"_ _  
_ He even remembered his wife Nikki rushing towards the ring.

" _JOHN! SPEAK TO ME! JOHN!"_

" _Nikki step away! We've gotta take him to a hospital!"_ _  
_"Is—is he gonna be alright?"_  
_"I don't know…_  
_"WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!"__

" _Nikki step away!"_

" _NO!"_

He was then carried to the nearest hospital, admitted in ICU. He barely made full recovery,  _barely…_

" _John… Man, you okay?"_ _  
_"Oh, Hunter! Yea, I'm fine."_  
_"Listen John…"_  
_"I know, I know... Retirement, right?"__

_Triple H who was the COO, nodded._

" _I'm sorry John…."_

" _It's okay…"_

" _Get well soon…"_

" _Hmm…."_

He got up from the floor rubbed his head - anymore damage and he'd be dead. He was lucky, well, at-least that is what you and I would think… He then walked through the corridors of Madison Square Garden one final time meeting and greeting everyone he's ever met in his career…

He was first approached by the Chairman of the Board Vince McMahon.

"Johnny boy!" The raspy elder man called at him. 

"Mr. McMahon, sir!" John greeted back.

"Hey… how's it going?" McMahon asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Oh, you know… Good." He weakly replied.

"Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know retirement's fun, John." He showed Cena the silver lining in the cloud, Cena simply nodded.

"Yea, I know, look I…. uh…" John uttered out, before being interrupted.

"Need some alone time, big man?" McMahon completed his sentence, to which he nodded again.

"I feel you. I'll leave you soak in the rustic smell one final time Cena." He said as Cena nodded and turned his heels and walked away.

"Oh John?" McMahon again called.

"Hmm?" He replied.

"Congratulations…" Vince congratulated. Cena simply smiled and tipped his baseball cat at him before walking away.

Cena continued to walk the aisle remembering all his times in the locker room – all the fights he stopped, all the fights  _he had. Pro wrestling is not a safe sport – with so many competition and unfortunate real-life rivalries who knew how Cena spent twelve years in a company notorious for their backstage fights and yet managed not to utter a word against it._

He was interrupted in his trail of thoughts when a voice having that similar rasp and a different pitch called him.  
"John!" She called. He turned at the direction of the voice and saw a female approaching him.

"John." The middle aged female approached him with a gentle smile.

"Steph!" He greeted back the shareholder of the company, Stephanie McMahon.

"John, how are you?" She asked.

"I'm fine." He replied.

"How's the neck?" She reiterated, pointing towards his neck.

"Hmm its better now, thanks." He replied shrugging..

"Look John… I know it's hard to sum it all up right now but believe me, you'll find out that retirement's better than this." Stephanie tried to commiserate him but he resisted.

"Look, Steph. You—you don't know how I feel…" He stated.

"John of course I do!" She persisted.

"No you don't." He replied..

"What do you think, huh? Was I happy and dancing around when Paul (Triple H) was in the hospital? The way he felt, I felt the same too." She was desperate in trying to make him feel better but one could definitely say that, at that time John Cena was stubborn.

"Don't drag your husband into this, okay?!" He fired back.

"Oh yeah? And why not? What's the difference between you and him then?" She argued back.

"The difference is that he was lucky enough to wrestle again and I’m not!" John shot back before storming off away from her and left her speechless, with the weight f the undisputed truth resting on her shoulders…

"I can't believe Stephanie for saying that!" John kept mumbling out as he furiously trotted on forwards - his facial expressions were now a visible scowl. He continued to brisk walk, letting out his anger through his feet before colliding with yet another McMahon family member.

"Ow John!" The male hissed as the physically more built Cena bumped in with the much smaller Shane McMahon.

"Shane! Oh I'm so sorry man!" Cena immediately apologized.

"Come on, bro. It's okay." He replied, with his signature smirk.

"Oh thank God." Cena husked out rather loudly.

"You okay John?" Shane asked.

"Yes I'm fine." He replied once more.

"You don't look fine to me." Shane stated the obvious. He was right, Cena looked like that he had just ran a marathon - his face was  blood-red, his eyes looked weary, his usual vibrant smile was not there at all but instead there was a slight scowl was there.

"You know what man? I— I think that you should talk to Hunter. He'll know what to do." He suggested Cena who thought it of being the wisest thing he heard so far.

"Thanks man. Kudos from me!" John replied with a visible smile as he patted Shane's shoulder, before running off to the fellow wrestler's office.

"Hm, looks like dad and Steph got under his skin again. Oh well." He mumbled to himself, before shrugging and going off to attend with his business.

John literally jogged his way to Hunter's office. He entered in without knocking too. Hunter knew that the matter was serious, still he decided to play it cool.  
"Oh, John! What a surprise!" He casually said, while he leant against his table while filling out some paperwork he held firmly against one of his thighs.

"Hunter, man we gotta talk!" John breathed out, exhilarated.

"Yeah yeah, go on." Triple H replied, gesturing his pen at him to sit down. Cena assumed his position on a beanbag nearby.

"Look man I…" Cena started out before being stopped.

"What is it, John?" Hunter asked as if he was unaware, but he was completely aware of what Cena was about to say. After all,  _experience does speak out louder more than actions themselves!_

"Look man: Vince said that retirement would be fun; Steph said that she had felt the same. Man I—"He was once again stopped by Triple H.

"Look, Vinny doesn't know shit abut wrestling okay? And Steph didn't wrestle _, I did_." Hunter told calmly.

"Yea I know! That's what I've been trying to tell them!" John desperately stated out, obviously angered from the fact.

"John, look… I know you love to wrestle." He replied.

"Love, Hunter?" Cena stated rather bewildered from the statement before continuing," Love it? I live it! I lived wrestling for twelve years Hunter! You know how long twelve years are Hunter?!" He barked out at his COO.

"Yes John. Twelve years are twelve years." He replied casually.  
"Of course dumbass!" He swore at Hunter.

"John, let's not get hyper now." He suggested, trying to stay calm.

"I—I dreamt of being a wrestler since I was five Hunter! I—I -- Hogan, Sting, Flair, Macho Man, Hitman, Undertaker, everybody I saw on that television screen inspired me to be a wrestler! I—I! You don't know what I did to become a wrestler! My mom was against it, my brothers were against it! Only my dad supported me! He patted me on my shoulder to say that it is going be alright John! It'll be alright!" Cena let hhis heart out.

"Alright you've told your  _Cinderella_  tale, now here is mine: I never wanted to be a wrestler at the first place okay?! I just wanted to look like them that's all! I met this guy Ted Arcidi at a gym once, okay? After seeing him in the WWF, I wanted to be a wrestler. John, I tried, I tried, and I tried! I tried to get him to talk to one of the boys, but he was like no! But after enough talking, he introduced me to Killer Kowalski. At first, Kowalski refused too and he said that I was too weak! But I tried again, and I tried enough to get that idiot to notice me! And that's where I began my wrestling career, John." Hunter angrily explained Cena about his hardships in the business, John was left stunned.

"You ain't the only one with problems John! I broke my leg once in the ring too. The doctors told me that I could never wrestle or even walk again! But I tried John! I tried and I…" He said before he was interrupted by Cena again.

"And you made it back! Not me! I was done in that ring, Hunter. DONE" Cena snorted at him.

"Look… I know you're hurt…" He said to a visibly shaken and sad John Cena.  
"No shit I'm hurt!" He replied, sarcastically.

"John, look… Do you wanna end up like all those guys who are now paralyzed? Or do you wanna walk for the rest of your life?" Hunter asked the grueling question. Cena he simply nodded.

"Hm, I know you're hurt man… Look, you want to know a secret?" He whispered at him. Cena raised his head at him.

"Hmm." He curiously replied.

"I'm the COO now because I can't wrestle anymore…" He let Cena know on his secret. John just looked at him, with his mouth open slightly.

"Wha- What?" He asked, in shock.  
"Only Michaels and Taker know this secret John. I'm not going to wrestle ever again…" He replied.

"Why?" Cena asked.

“Because had I chose to wrestle continuously, I'd end up paralyzed. Like you I was broken too - I was angry and fucking pissed. But then I thought about it, and realized that I retired right. No use in spending your life in a wheelchair, John." He told him, still Cena was shocked.

"Wheelchair?" He confoundedly asked.

"Hmm," Hunter nodded," For two months, I spent my life in a wheelchair after my match at WrestleMania. It hurt a lot. I felt dead, and that's where I had an epiphany- why kill yourself in wrestling when you can spend time in it? Not fighting but get the money and still be part of the action." He said.

"You're… you're right…." John admitted sighing deeply.           He understood the whole point – despite having love for professional wrestling, he could not let it affect his lifespan.

"Look I know your hurt, but John think of it in this way: in the next few years you would be in charge - you'd be telling all the youngsters how to wrestle, how to be tough and they'd be inspired by you and they'd try to be like you." Hunter showed Cena the silver lining he smiled at it.

"Who knows? You might manage one of the future stars!" Hunter continued.

"You're right. Thanks for the reality check, Hunter." He replied smiling.  
"Thatta boy! Now you remember tonight, don't cha?" Hunter reminded - that night they were going to formally wish Cena farewell.

"Yea, I remember…" He replied as he went out the door.  
"Oh and John?" Hunter saidstopping Cena on his tracks.  
"Yeah?" He asked.

"You've had an awesome career. Congratulations." Hunter told him.  
"Thank you…" Cena replied, as he signaled off Hunter, before leaving his office.

"Hehe, what a man…" Hunter chuckled at Cena's enthusiasm for wrestling, as he stacked his papers.

"I know what I gotta do…." Cena said to himself, determined as he marched through the corridors of the Garden _smiling_.

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**There we have chapter one is completed. I hoped you liked it. Please do review and take care and see you next time with chapter two.**

**Machu ^_^**

 

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